ASIC move against two directors

Allan Raad of Wentworthville, NSW and his brother-in-law Yousef Joseph Bazouni of Sandringham, NSW, have appeared in the Downing Centre Local Court on charges of breaching their director duties and fraudulently removing company assets. 

ASIC alleges that Mr Raad dishonestly used his position as a director of Cornish Property Services Pty Ltd (the company) with the intention of indirectly gaining an advantage for himself and that he fraudulently removed property belonging to the company. It is also alleged that Mr Bazouni aided Mr Raad in these alleged offences. 

The charges were brought against Mr Raad and Mr Bazouni following an ASIC investigation into the sale of the company assets shortly before it was placed in liquidation. 

ASIC alleges that on 2 July 2011, Mr Raad sold some of the company assets to Mr Bazouni's company for $20,000.

Then, on 4 August 2011, Mr Bazouni on-sold some of those assets to an unrelated party for $176,000 and gave the proceeds to Mr Raad.

ASIC alleges that Mr Raad used the funds on personal expenses and to make preferential payments to creditors of the company to whom Mr Raad provided personal guarantees. However, Mr Raad did not make payments to other creditors of the Company.

ASIC also investigated debtor payments that were owed to the Company. ASIC alleges that on 29 July 2011 and 11 August 2011 Mr Raad and Mr Bazouni redirected the debtor payments to Mr Bazouni's company. Once the money was received, Mr Bazouni transferred $21,000 to Mr Raad.

Mr Raad placed the company into voluntary liquidation on 18 August 2011 having outstanding liabilities of $1,643,052.55, of which $1,115,197.12 was owed to unsecured creditors. 

Messrs Raad and Bazouni appeared last week on 18 October 2017.

The matter was adjourned for mention to 21 November 2017 at the Downing Centre Local Court.

The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions is prosecuting the matter.

Mr Raad has been charged with one count under s184(2) of the Corporations Act and two counts under s590(1) of the Corporations Act. Mr Bazouni has been charged with aiding and abetting Mr Raad in committing these offences pursuant to Clause 11.2(1) of the Commonwealth Criminal Code.

The maximum penalty for a breach of s184(2) is 2000 penalty units or imprisonment for five years, or both.The maximum penalty for a breach of s590(1) is 100 penalty units or imprisonment for two years, or both.